They just happen to share the same philosophy about America’s place in MMA: Grappling tradition separates it from its British counterpart.

They share this sitting at podium in Birmingham, England, a days before UFC 138.

Let’s face it: Saturday’s event hasn’t generated much in the way of headlines that stick. But going into the UFC’s last major fight card to air on Spike TV, Leben and Pickett have plenty of reason to give wrestling consideration.

And the nuances of fighting – not star power – is what we’re really here for, right?

Leben and Pickett have reputations as more-than-proficient strikers, though as mixed martial artists, grappling has been a part of their world for countless years. Leben benefited from his affiliation with Team Quest, where decorated wrestlers Randy Couture, Matt Lindland and Dan Henderson led the way on the mats. Pickett, meanwhile, specialized in jiu-jitsu and took his ground game to the next level through his affiliation with American Top Team in the U.S.

While acclimating to the time change in the U.K., Leben took in training at a local gym and immediately noticed the difference in the caliber of grapplers there.

“They’re doing all the right things, but the only thing I can say is we have so much grappling in America,” he said. “Where I have a class of 20 guys, 15 of them will have wrestled through high school. [The ground game] is slowly but steadily picking up. They’re getting the moves; they’re learning the game. As far as the standup and the hands go, top notch.”

Munoz, of course, was a world-class wrestler before he ever ventured into MMA. But in recent years, he’s developed into a competent striker in his own right and has earned half of his octagon victories with his fists. The question, of course, is whether he’ll use those skills or rely upon those in which Leben carries a disadvantage.

Pickett, who makes his octagon debut after being forced from UFC 130 due to injury, has earned nine of his career victories via submission despite his “One Punch” moniker. For him, there was no other choice but to go overseas if he wanted to compete on a bigger stage. For those on their way up, he recommended no less than complete immersion with those at a high level in a certain discipline such as wrestling.

“Obviously, being in America, they have a certain big advantage with wrestling in high school, where we don’t have (that) over here,” Pickett said. “So that’s the reason I went to America. Because, to be honest, wrestling is dominating the sport at the moment, and I think it’s the most important part of this sport. You can control where the fight goes … and also (with) the way the judges are scoring fights nowadays, it’s very wrestling-biased. So I had to go and learn that if I wanted to be anything in the sport.”

Barao, who came into the UFC as a virtually undefeated yet untested prospect, used wrestling to the exception of much else in his octagon debut against Cole Escovedo at UFC 130. Although not the most exciting affair, his ground skills won over the judges.

If Pickett is looking to make a statement, it’s by knocking out the Brazilian in emphatic fashion. He won’t get anywhere close to that goal without a good sprawl.

Leben and Munoz have promised fireworks when they meet Saturday, though it’s Munoz who stands to benefit the most from smothering his opponent. Now on a three-fight win streak over the likes of Aaron Simpson, C.B. Dollaway and Demian Maia, a win over Leben would get “The Filipino Wrecking Machine” closer to the title shot he missed out on when Yushin Okami outpointed him 15 months ago.

Leben, meanwhile, is still trying to pick up momentum after an impressive three-fight win streak was brought to an abrupt halt at UFC 125 against Brian Stann. He rebounded with a quick KO of Wanderlei Silva at UFC 132, but he needs two or three more wins before being considered a true title contender.

Once a force in the weight division with a seven-fight win streak, Alves has dropped three of his past four, though two of those losses came to world-class talent (champ Georges St-Pierre and Jon Fitch). In his most recent outing at UFC 130, Alves was outworked by Rick Story, which left him in a must-win situation.

Perhaps fortunately, he’s been paired with Abedi, a 33-year-old with a third of his professional experience. Abedi, a Zaire native, has earned most of his wins on the international circuit, and a decision victory over the unknown Nathan Schouteren in Sweden’s Superior Challenge promotion earned him a ticket to the octagon. Unsurprisingly, Abedi is a significant underdog going into the fight.

Also, U.K. product Terry Etim (14-3 MMA, 5-3 UFC) returns to the cage for the first time since UFC 112 in April 2010. He meets lightweights Eddie Faaloloto (2-2 MMA, 0-1 UFC), who at 0-2 in the octagon faces imminent departure from the promotion with another loss.

Additionally, French striking specialist Cyrille Diabate (17-7-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC) hopes to make it two in a row when he faces light heavyweight Anthony Perosh (11-6 MMA, 1-3 UFC). Diabate defeated Steve Cantwell in his most recent outing at UFC on Versus 3, which reversed a submission loss to prospect Alexander Gustafsson at UFC 120. Perosh, meanwhile, picked up his first UFC win with a submission victory over Tom Blackledge at UFC 127, which put him on the right track after falling to the strikes of Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic as a last-minute replacement at UFC 110.